This preliminary study investigated the interaction between ecological, environmental and genetic factors among two native vines, Cissus hypoglauca and Cissus sterculiifolia (family Vitaceae). Data from a number of fragmented populations within the Big Scrub and surrounding rainforest areas in northern NSW were used to investigate how closely related vines respond to habitat fragmentation. What has emerged is an account of two species occupying fairly distinct ecological niches, and consequently being differently affected by current environmental disturbances. Cissus hypoglauca appears to have greater ecological amplitude, including resilience to drier environmental conditions, while in the long term Cissus sterculiifolia is likely to be more extensively affected by rainforest degradation and fragmentation. Genetic analysis suggests that prior to extensive clearing the Big Scrub provided a continuum for gene flow across otherwise fairly disjunct rainforest areas. This pilot study illustrates how simple research can often support the development of long-term conservation and management strategies at the species and plant community level.

Rare species have long exerted a particular fascination for many botanists. The reasons for this are discussed, as are the justifications for the scientific study of rare and threatened species. A high proportion of the threatened species currently on the Schedules of threatened species in New South Wales were first collected by the earliest botanical explorers. Possible reasons for their success in finding rare species are speculated upon.
Legislative requirements for the identification of threatened species have arisen under the Biodiversity Convention, and the particular regime established by the New South Wales Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 is described. Features of the plants currently included on the New South Wales Schedules are discussed and the question as to whether they are affected by a variety of recording biases is examined. The consequences of listing for the long term conservation of threatened species are explored.

Investigations were conducted at 49 sites in New South Wales (NSW) and the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) to map the location and extent of Sphagnum peatland communities, some of which no longer contained Sphagnum moss. Nine floristic groups were identified for the Sphagnum peatlands based on data from 39 of the surveyed sites. The data were ordinated by hybrid multi-dimensional scaling. The strongest floristic gradients corresponded to changes in altitude, climate and geology and were strongly related to the geographic distribution of sites. While some groups are on land reserved for conservation, others occur on forestry and private land tenures. Reservation has not protected some sites from threatening processes, with most Sphagnum peatland communities surveyed being moss remnants or peatlands in poor condition with invading weed species. The main factors that have led to this degradation are fire, grazing, clearing, feral animals (pigs and brumbies), forestry operations and peat mining.
This paper is dedicated to the memory of my friend and colleague, Don Adamson (JW).

Nungar Plain is a large, naturally treeless area in the northern part of Kosciuszko National Park. Abrief survey of the flora of Nungar Plain (December 2001–January 2002) recorded 206 taxa, 18 of which were introduced. Seven taxa appear to be of especial significance. The great floral diversity of Nungar Plain suggests that the botanical significance of sub-alpine plains in Kosciuszko National Park has been under-estimated. The flora and vegetation of Nungar Plain are threatened by pigs, which have scoured large areas of grassland vegetation. In six pairs of quadrats across disturbance boundaries, damage by pigs was found to have greatly reduced the cover and diversity of vegetation. Control of pigs is urgently required.

The vegetation of Burnt Down Scrub Nature Reserve, 15 km south west of Baryugil in the Parish of Carnham on the North Coast of New South Wales is described. A floristic survey of 28x0.04 ha plots was conducted in December of 1999. Five communities are defined based on flexible UPGMA analysis of abundance scores of vascular plant taxa. These communities are mapped based on ground truthing, air photo interpretation and substrate.
A total of 355 vascular plant taxa was recorded including four species listed as rare or threatened: Marsdenia liisae, Olearia heterocarpa, Sarcochilus weinthalii and Tinospora smilacina. This paper describes the communities and discusses their significance and distribution within the Nature Reserve. A vegetation map and species list are provided.

The vegetation of Mount Canobolas State Recreation Area (1673 ha), 14 km southwest of Orange (33°21’S, 154°59’E) in the Shire of Cabonne on the Central Tablelands of New South Wales is described. A floristic survey of 50x0.04 ha plots was conducted in November 1999. Seven communities are defined based on flexible UPGMA analysis of abundance scores of vascular plant taxa. Mapping of these communities is based on ground truthing, air photo interpretation and substrate. A total of 309 taxa was recorded including two species listed under the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995: Eucalyptus canobolensis and Eucalyptus saxicola. Additionally the reserve contains the Mount Canobolas Xanthoparmelia lichen community recently listed on the NSW Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995. This paper describes the seven communities and discusses their significance and distribution within the Recreation Area. A vegetation map and species list are provided.

Euphorbia paralias, Sea Spurge (Euphorbiaceae), indigenous to the sandy shores of southern Europe and northern Africa, was first collected in Australia near harbours: at Albany, Western Australia in 1927 and at Port Victoria, South Australia in 1934. E. paralias seeds are buoyant and dispersed by ocean currents. By 1974 E. paralias had reached Wilsons Promontory, but was not recorded from southern New South Wales until 1987, while in East Gippsland it was first recorded in 1993. Since then it has spread to other beaches in this region and has also turned up on Lord Howe Island.
Surveys have been carried out to ascertain the status of Euphorbia paralias in East Gippsland and southern New South Wales during the last decade. The results together with other observations have been correlated with the published results of drifter experiments. The latter relied on reporting back of stranded bottles, cards or envelopes released at certain distances offshore. The establishment of E. paralias in southern New South Wales, before doing so in East Gippsland, is in agreement with the stranding pattern of bottles released west of Wilsons Promontory. Another bottle and two cards released in eastern Bass Strait washed up on Lord Howe Island, thus underpinning the assumption that the colonising E. paralias seed was carried there on ocean currents. E. paralias is still expanding its range in New South Wales. Modelling based on climatic parameters has shown that extension to the lower North Coast of New South Wales can be expected. However, the spread of the introduced sea-rocket Cakile edentula beyond its known climatic range into the Great Barrier Reef area could provide a precedent for what may also happen in the case of E. paralias.

A surprising number of endemic species of plants and animals are found within Mount Canobolas State Recreation Area (33°21’ S, 148°59’ E, 1395 m asl) 15 km SW of Orange in the Central West of New South Wales. During this survey of bryophytes on Mount Canobolas, 75 species, including 60 moss species, 13 liverwort species and two hornwort species were identified. Although no endemic bryophyte species were recorded, the assemblage included an unusual combination of alpine, arid zone and rainforest species. Areas of exposed rock on the upper flanks of the mountain are particularly species rich. The geology of the area is complex and the presence of certain species at particular locations is probably determined by the chemical composition of the substrate rock. Polytrichastrum alpinum, a rare species in New South Wales previously recorded only above 1500 metres in alpine areas of Kosciuszko National Park, was collected on Mount Canobolas at 1206 m asl. Anumber of uncommon species were recorded in Mount Canobolas State Recreation Area, including the mosses Bryoerythrophyllum jamesonii, Leptodontium paradoxum, Hymenostomum microstomum var. brachycarpa, Orthotrichum assimile, Tortula anderssonii, Tortula rubella and Tortula ruralis, the liverwort Riccia crozalsii and the hornwort Anthoceros cf. punctatus.

In 1985 and 1989, two studies examined the effects of time since fire, topography and resprouting eucalypts on the composition of understorey species in mallee vegetation at Yathong Nature Reserve, in semi-arid New South Wales. Emphasis was on ephemerals. Species richness was significantly higher at 2.5 years after fire. Species present five years after fire were a subset of those occurring earlier. Twodimensional ordination based on ranked similarity measures of species and analysis of similarities indicated discrete time since fire groups. Short-lived species dominated early groups (< 2.5 years) i.e. Haloragis odontocarpa, Convolvulus erubescens, Sclerolaena parviflora and Solanum coactiliferum. All these species had disappeared at > 5 years. The perennials Triodia scariosa, Amphipogon caricinus and Halgania cyanea, dominated at > 5 years post-fire. Species composition was significantly affected by topographic position (upper, mid, lower dune) but not by mallee eucalypts (under canopy, in gap). Two-dimensional ordination based on ranked similarity measures of species and ANOSIM indicated that upper and lower topographic positions were significantly different. Most common species in upper topographic positions were Haloragis odontocarpa, Bracteantha viscosa and Sclerolaena parviflora and in the lower Stipa scabra, Haloragis odontocarpa and Chenopodium sp. Species richness was not significantly affected by topography or eucalypts (17.45/10m2 +/- 0.16). The number of ephemeral species (10 m-2) was higher in the lower topographic positions (7.87 +/- 0.66) than the upper (4.88 +/- 0.44). There was no significant effect of eucalypts on the number of ephemeral or perennial species.